A Broken Soul
by LeMafiaKreb
Summary: Third story, here goes. In a run-down and decrepid city, crime rules supreme. Kicked out of his home, A young man named Jack needs to survive under the guidance of the biggest mafia boss ever. Climbing the chain of command, Jack will have to find ways to keep himself, and his friends, alive.
1. Chapter 1: Smoke And Gunfire

Author's Notes

Not sure which category to put this under, but I wanted to set it out there. This is one of the many stories I have no one to share with. It's based in a sort of 'modernized' Great Depression era. Like, it's all dark and smokey, dirty and rundown buildings, violence and such. Y'know, the perfect setting for a mafia film.

Anywho, enjoy!

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Prologue

A mass of people were walking the streets, going from here to there. The government had been trying to keep things under control, but as of late it's grip has become loose. Criminals and gangsters roam the city. Children whose parents did not want are wailing on the curbs, cold and afraid.

One figure walked down the alleyways, wearing a black cloak and fedora. A cigarette hung from his lips, leaving a faint blue trail. In his right hand he held a small briefcase, and in the other a crumpled note. Walking up to a run-down house, he knocked three times. Then twice more, softly. The door opened, and the man walked in.

He sat down on a couch, and extended the note towards the elder who opened the door. "I assume this was meant for me?" He spoke in a calm and gruff voice. The other man, gray hair coming out of his head, nodded warily. "I could have my bouncers deal with this, unless you want me to do it personally." The man cleared his throat and spoke in a nervous voice.

"I... would like it to be you. I've heard that you can be very persuasive, and it's not as if I want him dead. Just... keep him safe. His parents were unforgivable assholes who left him to rot. But all I want is to protect the boy."

The cloaked man nodded, and stood up. "I can do that. Will he be under your custody or mine?" The elder looked at the floor. "I have neither the energy or space for a child, much less a young man. He will be under your custody, if that is alright." The cloaked man nodded, and opened the suitcase. The inside was empty, covered in crimson silk.

"Two thousand dollars. Not more, not less." The old man nodded, and left to the kitchen. The cloaked person stood up and examined the room, wondering how such a person could pay off this expensive task. It was a depressing green, with a small table and couch. An empty fireplace stood against the wall, pictures on the brick shelf.

The elder returned with the cash and carefully placed it in the briefcase. "There. Two thousand dollars. Please, be gentle with him." The cloaked man closed the case and picked it up. He began to open the door before he answered.

"Don't worry. He will be safe".

And with that, he left the sad little house and returned to the alleyways.

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Chapter one: smoke and gunfire.

Jackson had been walking the streets for a while. His parents had kicked him out one day, and now all he did was wander around. He wasn't used to the loneliness, or the pungent smells of the streets.

He was used to the irritability of some people, though.

Jack wasn't violent, or brave. He was mostly confused. Not even that afraid.

Just... new to this lifestyle, so to speak. He looked at everything with wide eyes. His parents had never let him out, not even to their back yard. So, like a small child, he found everything interesting and new.

He wandered into an alley, attracted my the meow of a cat. Looking around, he noticed that the cat was cleaning itself on top of a dumpster. Jack walked up to it, and the cat stopped. They both looked at each other for a while, before the cat stood up and walked away.

Jack didn't follow it, thinking that it might want some personal space, and walked deeper into the alley. There was something at the end, like a different shade of black that stood out as a silhouette. Then, the shape moved and took a step towards him. It was a man, wearing a dark cloak and fedora, as well as a sort of black handkerchief covering his mouth.

"Good afternoon, Jackson" the boy opened his mouth in awe, eyes wide and surprised. The cloaked man spoke again with a muffled voice. "I am not here to hurt you. I was tasked with caring for you until you are of age. Follow me, if you please." Then, without waiting for a response, he turned and walked away.

Jack followed him after a few seconds, trailing behind the strange man. He asked a in small and uncertain voice; "where, um... where are we going?" The cloaked man chuckled but did not respond. They exited the alley at an empty and narrow street. Jack opened his eyes again.

"Hey... this is my house." The cloaked man nodded. "How old are you, Jack?" The boy thought for a second. "Fifteen, I think. My parents didn't celebrate my birthday." The cloaked man spoke again. "Did your parents ever hurt you?" He shook his head. The cloaked man nodded again and pointed at the house as he spoke.

"They did hurt you, Jack. They abandoned you. Never loved you. How does that make you feel?" Jack's face turned sullen. "I feel... bad. Angry and sad at the same time." The man looked at the teen.

"That's alright. You should be. One day, Jack, I will bring you back here and you can tell me if you feel the same. Now, though, we will go home." The boy looked confused as he followed the cloaked man back to the alleyways.

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The Man led the teen through run-down homes and alleyways, never stopping for him, even when the boy begged to wait up. This was a test. If the boy could follow, then he was worth his time. If not, then he would leave him at an orphanage. He was not entirely cold-blooded, after all.

The boy managed to keep up despite the man's best efforts. This pleased him, and he stopped. Jack ran up to him, breathing heavily. "Are... are we the... There yet?" The man nodded and took a step back. They were in an alley that had a door on the left side. This lead to a rather large and dusty building.

The cloaked man knocked on the wooden door twice. "Sulfur." The door opened as soon as the word was spoken, and both the man and the boy walked in. A young man in dirty worker attire greeted them. "Hya, boss. The boys've been very busy in your absence. We got another one of 'em cars working, and a new shipment of-" The man noticed Jack for the first time. "-of um... stuff."

The cloaked man nodded. "Thank you Fergus. This is Jack. I was tasked with caring for him. Make sure the boys are aware." The dirty man nodded. "Will do, boss. Oh, and by the way, we're runnin' low on high-cal. Just a heads up." The 'boss' nodded, and led Jack inside by the shoulders.

The building was a large factory with multiple skeletal floors. There were people everywhere, unpacking and repacking, building and breaking, as well as standing guard. The large furnaces on one side of the factory emited dull red light, giving the entire factory a gloomy appearance.

"See this, Jack? This is were you'll live. There is rooms near the back, and one of them yours. You will be taken care of here." Jack nodded, and looked around even more. The man had a good feeling about the boy, 'So naive and full of potential'. The workers were busy forging and crateing materials for the next run.

The cloaked man guided Jack to his room, through a door near the back. There was a hallway lit up by lamps hanging from the ceiling, and there were doors lined up on the right-hand side. The man pointed at the fifth door. "That is your room. I'll leave you now, as I have other business to attend to. Feel free to explore the other doors, if you like." With that, he turned and left, back the way they came.

Jack stood in the hallway for a few minutes, confused and tired. He took a step toward the first door and knocked. When no one answered, he gripped the knob and opened the door. Inside was a plain and empty room with some boxes and furniture. He closed it and tried the second. This one had no furniture, but it did have lots of crates. The third was like the first but without boxes, and the fourth was empty.

Jack entered his room. There was a couch, a table with chairs, a dresser and some lit lamps. There was a bed in the farthest corner, as well as a nightstand. He looked around, checking both the dresser and the nightstand before leaving. The nightstand was empty, but the dresser was full of clothing, from jeans and hoodies to full tuxedos and suits. All his size.

Trying the sixth door, he found a sort of office space, and decided to leave it alone. Before he could try the seventh, the guy from earlier called for him from the doors. "Hey, Jack! It is Jack, right? It's me, Fergus! The boss wanted me ta tell you something impohtant!" Jack turned and walked towards Fergus. "Okay. What is it?" Fergus fiddled with something in his pockets and answered.

"Th' clock in your room has an alarm set up. The boss wants you to meet with him when it goes off. He will be waiting at the top floor. All you gotta do is walk op them stares oveh theh -" he pointed at the other end of the hall, "- and turn right. And be on time. Anyway, just stay in youh room 'til th' alarm rings, Kay?" Jack nodded and Fergus left after patting him on the shoulder.

Jack decided to try on some of the clothes he found in the dresser, as the ones he was currently wearing consisted of dirty sneakers, a shirt and jeans. He put on some fresh pants, a long-sleeve shirt and new sneakers. Everything fit snugly. He sat down on the couch and took a short nap. After a few hours, the alarm went off waking him from his wonderful slumber.

Jack stood up and walked down the hall toward the stairs. He walked up the four flights before a right turn presented itself. There was a door at the end of a short hall, and Jack walked through. The door lead to a rather large and seemingly unfinished room. There were support posts everywhere and there were only walls in the back and to the left. You could see a clear sky and some buildings from there.

"Ah, Jack! Thank you for being here on time." Jack turned to see the cloaked man sitting in a large chair that resembled a throne, as well as a girl about his age standing next to him with her arms crossed. She was probably a year older than him, actually. "Uh, hi, mister." The cloacked man smiled. "My sincerest apologies, Jack. I never introduced myself! My name is Raleigh satin, but you may call me Raleigh." Jack nodded, and Raleigh spoke again.

"This is one of my associates, Lila Turpin. She will be your mentor and guide. You will learn a lot of things from her, some which you won't understand right now. With time, I'm sure that you two will become very close."

Lila said nothing, standing straight and looking at Jack with a neutral expression. Jack spoke up. "What is... what will I do here? What even is here?" Raleigh smiled again. "Lila will answer all of your questions." He turned to the girl. "Take him to the training room. Make sure to find a weapon that best suits him." Lila nodded and walked towards Jack.

"Follow me." Jack tagged along, sneaking a last glance towards Raleigh. Lila brought him two floors down and they entered another wide room. This one had tables and lockers, as well as wooden targets at the far end. Everything was loaded with guns and ammunition. A short barrier divided the room a few meters from the entrance, and the roof was lit with wide LED lights.

"This is the training room. You will chose two weapons out of all the others. They will be your personal weapons. Choose carefully." She sounded bored as she spoke, and Jack felt a little wounded. He walked forward, examining the weapons. There was rifles, machine guns, pistols, shotguns and even a few knives. He picked up a gun with a wooden stock and foregrip, a long black barrel protruding from it's front. The weapon boasted a large drum, and sleek design.

"That's what your choosing? A tommygun? Suit yourself." He turned towards Lila, but didn't say anything. He kept looking, until his eyes spotted a rather large and long revolver. "Oh, I don't think that's a good idea, friend. That's a .44, the recoil will send it flying out of your hand." Jack had gotten irritated with Lila's neutral and judging replies.

"Hey, I don't know anything about guns! You told me to choose, and that's what I'm doing! You are supposed to help me!" Lila didn't show any emotion, and pointed to a smaller version of the revolver. "That's a 22. If you can handle it well enough, I might let you try the 44. And as long as you don't hold down the trigger, you should be fine with the tommygun.

Jack nodded and picked up the small revolver. It was light and long, a comfortable carbon-fiber grip protruding from it's rear end. Jack tested the weight, and pointed it at the targets. "Shoot one." Jack hesitated, but aimed the revolver nonetheless. "You need to cock back the hammer, then pull the trigger. It's easy." Jack looked at her. "What's the hammer?" Lila pointed at a small piece of metal sticking out of the gun.

"That's the hammer. You pull it back until the cylinder rotates and clicks. Then you pull the trigger to fire." Jack nodded and aimed up the revolver again. He cocked it and fired. The shot rang out and a small splinter flew off the target's shoulder. Lila sighed.

"We're gonna have to work on that."

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Jack sat slumped on the couch, exhausted. Lila had been helping him train for five days in a row, and Jack was beginning to get sick of gunfire sounds. Recently, though, Lila had deemed it a good idea to practice hand-to-hand combat. She bested Jack every time, leaving him battered and bloody. She never truly hurt him, though. Just some scrapes and minor wounds, like nosebleeds and such.

Jack had gotten good with the light revolver, being able to hit his mark at a medium distance. That's not to say that he was perfect, as some times the 'hits' didn't have much impact. The tommygun was a real problem. He fired for a couple seconds at a time, but it was still hard for him to hit anything with it.

Lila happened to live three doors down, at the eighth bedroom. She always woke up earlier, and was always ready before him. Always one step ahead.

They were going to train again tomorrow, target practice this time. He arrived ten minutes late, just to tick Lila off. She didn't show any signs of... Well, anything, really. "Show me how good you are with the 22." Jack picked up the now familiar revolver and loaded it as fast as he could. "Impressive. But loading while under fire is very much different from loading calmly. Empty it and reload." Jack flashed her a confused look but did as he was told, emptying it and loading it back up in a matter of seconds.

"Right. Room for improvement as always. Fire as fast as you can. Try fan-firing if you want. It's when you use your off-hand to cock the hammer while you pull the trigger, efficiently emptying the gun. It takes a while to learn, though, so don't worry if you can't do it."

Jack grumbledand aimed the revolver. "I'm guessing that I have to fire from the hip?" Lila nodded, and Jack shifted the gun down. Once it was in a comfortable spot, he placed his open palm on the hammer and brought it down. As soon as Jack heard it click he pulled the trigger, repeating the process until the weapon was empty.

"Not bad, Jack. I'm sure that with time and practice, you'll be able to fire that thing ten times a second." Jack smiled. "Try the tommygun now." His smile wavered a little, but held fast. He put down the light revolver and picked up the heavy sub machine gun. Holding it in a comfortable, he aimed it at one of the targets.

"Hold it steady, now. Breathe in, breath out." Jack nodded and pulled the trigger once. A spray of bullets flew from the barrel, leaving it glowing red. The head of a target was instantly shredded by the oncoming fire. "Nice. Try holding the trigger down for longer, though. See what happens." This made jack nervous, as he had never been able to control the weapon's recoil when firing with full force.

He shifted his legs, bracing himself. He held the trigger for a full five seconds before the kick became too much. One of the wooden targets got turned to splinters, while the other two suffered minor damage from the spread. Lila gave another approving nod. "I think you should try more stuff. If you can handle those two, then a scattershot or a different kind of pistol should be no problem."

She picked up a double barrel shotgun and a small blocky pistol. "Here. A double barrel and a glock. Try them." Jack took the pistol and aimed at one of the two remaining targets. Before he fired, he asked one thing; "who sets the targets after they've been destroyed?" She smiled. "It could be anyone. Usually it's Fergus, or Simmons." Jack nodded. "Who's Simmons?" Lila pointed at the target. "Focus, Jack."

He sighed and aimed the weapon. After a brief moment he pulled the trigger once. The shot flew through the head of the target, leaving a sizable hole in it's wake. "Try faster, and more." Jack nodded and fired four times in quick succession. The target was filled with bullet-holes. "Good. Now try the shotgun." He took the double barrel and poked at Lila.

"How does this one work? How do I load it?" She pointed at a metal bit beside the barrels. "You pull this down, the empty shells eject, you load new ones, you fire. The recoil is atrocious, and the range could be better, but it's one of the fastest shotguns ever made." Jack fiddled with the gun until he found the release. Two shells flew out, hitting the wall beside him. "Okay. What ammo does it use?" Lila picked up two identical red shells and stretched them out to Jack.

"12 gauge. Pretty common stuff for shotguns. All we have is twelve and twenty gauge, anyway." Jack nodded again and took the shells from Lila. He pushed them into the empty slots where the other shells used to be. Then he pushed the barrel back up and into place, making sure it clicked. "Alright. Now aim it up." He followed her instructions and stood in a comfortable position before he fired.

"That thing has two triggers, one for each barrel. If you just pull willy-nilly, then the recoil will smack it against your face. Fire slowly, try to manage the kick." Jack nodded again and began to pull one of the triggers. The right barrel spit out flames, sending 8 small pellets towards the target. Most of them hit their mark, leaving the poor target's chest hollow.

"Again, other target this time." Jack shifted to face the last remaining target and pulled the trigger. He managed to keep the recoil in check, and the pellets tore through the thin wood of the target. "Okay, now try both barrels at the same time. Remember to reload." Jack ejected the shells and picked up two new ones.

"Are you sure? You said it was hard." She kept her poker face on. "You managed the Thompson, and the recoil from the shotty didn't look like a problem, so go for it." He nodded again and closed the barrels after loading the fresh shells. He braced himself and pulled both triggers hard.

The gun spewed metal, and the target was rendered useless. Jack was pushed back a little, but he kept the gun as straight as possible. "Good job! I didn't think you could actually do it without hurting yourself." The recoil actually took the breath out of Jack's lungs, but he didn't let her notice. "Yep. Easy."

Lila flashed a malevolent smile. "Alright, tough guy. Try this." She picked up a large revolver from the table. "It's the .44 you wanted to try! Think you can handle it?." Jack gave her a smug grin and took the weapon. It felt heavy and big in his hand, but it also felt right. He opened the cylinder and found it fully loaded. Closing it back up, he pulled back the hammer and aimed it at the remains of the second target.

"The recoil is one hell of a problem with that one, so be careful." Jack nodded once again and pulled the trigger. This time, though, it seemed that Lila had been right. The recoil was so much and it hit so suddenly that the gun almost smacked him in the forehead. The bullet left a large hole though the thin target, size in between that of the shotgun and the glock.

Determined to not seem weak in front of Lila, he cocked it again and fired. He was prepared for the push this time, and kept the gun mostly straight. Another gaping hole was left in the battered target. "Well, it seems that you can handle that. I'll call for Fergus to replace the targets before we continue. If you want, you can stay here or go to your room."

Jack looked around. "I think I'll stay." Lila shrugged. "Fine. Suit yourself." With that, she left the room, and her voice could be heard through the thick concrete walls as she called for Fergus. Jack examined the rest of the weapons, reading the engraved names on each of them in his head.

Glock, Thompson, Remington, Magnum, AK-47, FN-CAL... some of these are very weird. He picked up a small rifle with a weird grip, unable to find a magazine. It looked like the magazine was the grip. He aimed at a target, expecting the weapon to be loaded.

It didn't disappoint, spitting out bullets at a fast rate of fire. Since there was no targets left to hit, the bullets sank into the wall. The recoil had been next to nothing compared to the big bulky revolver, but the grip was quite awkward.

Setting the weapon down, he continued his inspection. There were all sorts of firearms, from the smallest pocket pistol to the largest machinegun imaginable. He looked over at the knives. Just like with the guns, there was a lot of them. Even some machetes that would probably count as shortswords instead.

Before he could pick up any of them, though, Fergus entered the room, Lila behind him, both carrying more wooden targets. "Hya, kid! How you doin'?" Jack smiled. "Fine. How are yourself, Fergus?" "Good, good. Thanks for askin'. Lemme jus' replace these targets so you can get back to practicin'." He jumped over the short wall that separated the weapons area from the targets and started setting everything up.

It took him about twenty minutes before he was done. "There! Good as new. Now, I bettah git back to th' boss. We wus discussin importent stuff wit' Daniels, his second-in-command. See ya!" With that, he walked out, back up the stairs. Lila looked at the wall.

"I see some new bullet holes. Which one did you try?" Jack pointed at the gun he used earlier. "That weird one. The grip magazine is a little uncomfortable, but other than that it's a decent weapon." Lila nodded. "Yeah, that's kind of why we don't use it much. Let's keep going."

They spent the rest of the day training, smoke bellowing from multiple barrels, flames erupting from within them. By the time Lila called quits, Jack's arms and shoulders were sore to hell and back. Before Lila entered her room, He spoke up.

"Hey, do you remember when I met you? That Raleigh had said you would answer any questions I have? Well, we had been so busy the entire week that you didn't let me make any." Lila smiled as she opened her door. "That was the intention." Before she could close it, Jack put his foot against the door, stopping it. "Please? I need answers before we do anything else. It's been constant shooting and punching and I don't know why. Will you?"

Lila sighed and opened the door fully. "Come in", she said in a slightly irritated and tiresome voice. She ley down on the couch, stretching and getting herself comfortable. Jack sat down in a chair at the table. "I'll give you answers to three questions. Just three." Jack nodded and thought carefully. It had been a while since he allowed his mind to wander and explore.

"Uhh... what... happens here? Like, what does Raleigh and Fergus and all the other guys do all day?" Lila hesitated for a second before speaking. "Well, I suppose you are allowed to know. Raleigh did bring you in... fine, couldn't hurt, I guess. We are a mob. A mafia gang or clan or whatever. Y'know, drug dealing and black market trafficking and stuff. The whole steel factory downstairs is mostly a façade."

Jack nodded, storing this information. "Okay. That's... a lot to take in, but alright. Now, how... important or big is this... mob?" Lila thought this over. "Well, were a pretty big deal out there. Not the biggest but certainly important. Some gangs even have more political power than the government, us among them. We get constant threats and attacks from smaller gangs trying to catch other large mob's attention."

Jack nodded nice more, and before he could ask the last question, Lila interrupted him. "You nod a lot. Not only when talked to, but to yourself as well. It's pretty weird." He raised an eyebrow, knowing very well what she was referring to.

"Yeah, I guess it is. I'm not very vocal, or shut. I just... nod. It's my way of thinking. And processing information. My parents really didn't let me say much, just nod. So now it's kind of the only way I can express acceptance or understanding."

Lila nodded, and Jack spoke up again. "You owe me another question." She looked at him with mock hatred. "No fair! We didn't agree on this! You can't make me!" Jack smiled, playful mischief in his eyes. "Well, I could tell Raleigh you're not doing your job..." now she smiled. "You are devious. Fine. What else would you like to know?" He thought it over for a second.

"How does the chain of command work here? And who holds which spots?" She organaized her thoughts before answering. "Raleigh holds the top spot. He's the big boss. Daniels is his second-in-command, the chief. Fergus is the steel factory foreman. Simmons is the head of security. Reynolds manages the drug runs and such.

I'm somewhere in between the managers and the chief, as the newbie trainer. The guards and runners are the highly trained peeps, while the steelworkers and storage helpers are new guys." Jack thought for a second.

"Okay, last question. Why are you training me? As in, what makes me special and different from the other newbies?" Lila opened her mouth and closed it again. She repeated the process a few times, hesitating for some time before she actually answered.

"Well... it's probably not my place to say, but here goes. Raleigh was tasked to take you in, to protect you. I have no idea who or why, but Raleigh never turns down a job. So, now you're essentially his protégé. He told me to train you so you could defend yourself, and I'm pretty sure he also plans on sending you out to pull off some tasks."

Jack took his time registering the flood of information before nodding. Then, he got up. "Thanks. For answering my questions. And for the training." Lila smiled. "Of course. It's my job, after all." Jack smiled at her before heading back to his room. Once there, he threw himself on the bed and fell asleep. The day had taken it's toll on him.

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Jack woke up to someone knocking on his door. He stood and smoothed out his crumpled clothes. Walking to the door, he heard another impatient knock before opening. "Yes?" He was met with Raleigh's thrilled and expectant face, as well as Lila's irritated one. "Good morning, Jack! I hope this isn't a bad time?"

Jack rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned. "No, sir. It's fine." Raleigh seemed happy with the response. "Good, good! Lila has reported your progress to me and I would like to see it for myself. Change clothes and meet us at the training room in ten."

Jack nodded and gently closed the door. He then trudged over to the dresser and opened it. He chose some comfortable pants and a white shirt, as well as a black long-sleeve button-up shirt to go over it. Now he looked ready for business. Before he left, though, Jack took a red tie, thinking it would complete the look. Trying his best to tie the damn thing, he eventually gave up and ran outside and up the stairs.

Once he opened the doors to the training room, he saw Raleigh talking to Lila. The boss turned to look at him. "Hello, Jack! Good to see you're as punctual as ever! Let's see how your training has been going, hm?" He picked up a Glock and passed it to Jack. "Here, try this one. Fire it off as fast as you can and then reload it." Jack nodded and walked to stand in front of the targets. He aimed the weapon.

Firing in quick succession, Jack managed to empty the cartridge in less than ten seconds, swiftly dropping the used magazine on the floor and replacing it with a new one. Raleigh seemed impressed. "Very good, Jack! Try this one," Raleigh tossed him a large bulky rifle which Jack recognized as a Remington. "Okay," was his only answer as he aimed the weapon.

Before their talk, Lila had showed Jack how to use every weapon in the room, so he felt comfortable wielding the large shotgun. He shot and pumped as fast as he could, firing off all seven cartridges in a matter of seconds. By now the first and second target were just splinters. Raleigh smiled. "Okay, then, hotshot. Try the Thompson."

Jack picked up the familiar sub machine gun and checked it's drum, finding it full to the brim. Loading it back up, he aimed at the last target. Looking to completely blow Raleigh away, Jack planned to fire off every bullet in the drum. Getting into a steady and comfortable position, he held down the trigger, hard.

The gun spewed lead and fire, turning the last target to mush. Jack's morning tiredness disappeared while firing the weapon. On and on the bullets flew, causing Lila and Raleigh to step back. "Jack, you shouldn't do that! It's dangerous to hold down automatics for so long!" Jack made a grim smile. "Calm down, I got this."

The recoil of the weapon soon became a problem, making his shoulder ache something fierce. He held on, however, keeping the barrel as straight as humanly possible. After about thirty seconds, the weapon finally died down, barrel glowing bright red and smoking. The wall was a mess of bullets, most of them concentrated where the target used to stand.

Jack put the gun down on the table and looked at the slightly frightened duo. Raleigh cleared his throat and spoke up, gruff as ever. "Very well done, Jack. I'm impressed." His smile turned dark, as well as his eyes, giving him a creepy look.

"I think you're ready for your first job."

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More Author's Notes

This is my first ever 5k word chapter, and it took me two and a half moderately busy days to complete. Now I know why it takes some people weeks to dish them out...

I am happy with the way this one turned out, and I hope you guys like it too. Now that I'm done sulking, I will continue with my main story, Knock-On-Wood. So, if you don't mind...

Check it out please? :P

Anywho, thank you for your support, And have a great day! :D

~ LeMafiaKreb

P.S, the chapter is only 5.5k words long because of the epilogue :)


	2. Chapter 2: A Job With The Gang

Author's Notes

Hello! I realize how difficult it is to make 5k chapters now.

This one I felt was long overdue, even if it is just a few days after the first chapter. I really wanted to write this heist chapter. :D

Although, it's more of a quick combat chapter...

Anywho, Let us begin! These chapters will always be in third-person, unless a first-person view is necessary. Mkay?

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Raleigh lead Jack and Lila to the stairs and up one flight. Inside the large room were crates and boxes of every size and shape. Raleigh opened one. There was white dust inside small, clear plastic packets. He picked one up and tossed it to Jack, who caught it in the air.

"This here's cocaine. We smuggle the stuff as well as heroin and weed. Now, your job is to help pull off a trade with a guy downtown. He wants half a pound of the stuff, and it's worth about 900 bucks. Money went to shit after some time since the banks fell, so now some things are cheaper while some are more expensive."

Jack nodded. "All of these crates are filled with drugs?" Raleigh smiled. "No, some of them, have weapons or parts. Drugs isn't the only thing we deal in." He stood leaning against a box a few feet away. "Now, the reason I need you along is because these deals can be dangerous, not just to you but to the runner. It might be a junky just needing some high, it could be a rival gang ambush, might even be the cops. So, you're gonna be there to help protect our runner."

He stood back up and walked out of the room, gesturing to follow. Lila and Jack looked at each other before tagging along. They went down two more floors, to the one above the factory. Inside the well-lit room were beds and closets, all lined up. "This is the barracks. Our boys sleep and dress up here. The bathroom's at the other end, and the showers are right beside it. Now, I sent Reynolds to get me one of his runner boys. Reynolds is my drug manager, by the way."

As soon as Raleigh was done talking, the doors behind them opened. There was a man almost as tall as Raleigh, but thinner, wearing a black suit and tie. His face looked stern, and incompassionate. Beside him was a teen boy, around the same age as Jack, wearing an orange shirt and black shorts. He had messy brown hair, and a sharp nose.

The man beside him spoke. "Here he is, boss. This is Tommy, one of our runners and resident coward. Kid won't even bring a gun with him." The boy, Tommy, looked at his feet and mumbled. "I don't like them. They're loud and unwieldy." Raleigh patted Jack in the back. "Say hello to Tommy, Jack. He's the runner you are gonna help protect. I'm sending you, Chris, and Liam to keep Tommy safe."

Jack extended a hand and Tommy shook it. "Nice to meet you, Tommy." The other boy smiled lightly. "Nice to meet you, Jack. Lila." The girl simply nodded, her poker face back on. Raleigh clapped his hands and smiled. "Now that introductions are over, let Reynolds take you downstairs to the garage. The rest of the guys are already there."

Reynolds nodded and left the room, not giving Jack or Tommy time to hesitate. The boys followed him downstairs. They passed through the factory, with it's gloomy light and hideous smell. They went through a door at the other end of the factory. Inside was a garage that looked like it could hold a commercial plane inside it.

There was cars in all sorts of stages of repair, from empty husks to fully kitted out dragsters. Reynolds took them to a sleek black car in the corner, where two other men where waiting. "Jack, this is Chris;" he pointed to the shorter one, "And this is Liam." He pointed to the taller, brawnier one. "Say hello, Jack."

"Hi." He extended his hand and both men shook it. Liam spoke up. "Hello, kid. You're gonna help us keep Tommy safe, no?" Jack nodded, and Liam smiled. "Good. I heard Raleigh thinks you could be one of the best. Well soon find out, huh Chris?" The other man simply nodded. Liam hunched close to whisper in Jack's ear. "All business, he is. Don't let it get to you, though." He stood back and Reynolds spoke in a harsh voice.

"You two done chatting? Then please, enter the car. The stuff is loaded in the trunk. Don't fuck this up." With that, he left the garage, back towards the factory. Everyone got in, Chris in the driver's seat, Tommy riding shotgun. Jack sat in the back with Liam.

Chris revved up the car and someone opened the garage door. They drove down the streets for some time, taking turns here and there, until they stopped at a very dirty alley. There was a lanky man inside, leaning with half-lidded eyes against the wall.

The four of them climbed out, and Liam opened the trunk. There was four pistols and one of the clear packets inside. Chris, Liam and Jack took a pistol, while Tommy only took the drugs. The two men put away their weapons, but since Jack didn't have a holster, he simply walked with it pointed at the ground.

The man in the alley stood up straight. "What's with the gun, kid? Don't trust me?" Jack made his best effort at a poker face, but he couldn't help but smile just a little. "No, I just didn't get a holster." The lanky man smiled and spoke to Liam. "What's up with the posse? It's just me, dude. All I needed was you, or the kid, and then boom, trade closed."

Liam smiled. "We both know how much of a backstabbing bitch you are, Vin. Now hand over the money." Vin made a mock hurt face. "Wounds hurt, Y'know. Fine, here's the dough." He tossed over a small briefcase full of cash. Chris counted the money while Liam and Vin talked. Jack and Tommy felt a bit awkward.

Once Chris had made sure everything was alright, he signaled to Tommy. The boy tossed Vin the bag, and the lanky man caught it mid-air. "I trust you, Li. Now skedaddle, before the fuzz shows up." The man nodded and everyone got back in the car.

It felt like the drive to the alley took longer than the drive back. They stopped in front of the garage, and Chris made a short call. The garage doors opened and they drove in. Once everyone was out of the car, a man walked up to meet them. He was about the same size and build as Chris.

"Good afternoon, men. I assume the run went fine?" Liam nodded. "Yep, Vin paid up and no-one was hurt." The man nodded, turning to Jack. "Good. I do believe we have not been properly introduced." The man extended a hand out to him. He shook it and spoke. "I don't think so, sir. My name is Jack. I'm the newbie." The man smiled. "Hello, Jack. My name is Daniels. I'm Raleigh's right-hand man, the chief. How are you?"

Jack answered after some time. "A bit confused. I still have some questions, but other than that I'm fine. The 'run' was a bit awkward though." Daniels made a weird face, as if feigning interest. "Really? Well, I'm sure you'll get used to it. Chris." He turned to the shorter man. "I'll take the cash. You will make me a report. Liam, I think Fergus is looking for you. Tommy, Reynolds needs your report for him."

He looked at them one at a time before stopping at Jack. "I believe Raleigh needed to speak with you, Jack." Without another word, he walked out the room. The two men plus Tommy walked hurriedly behind him, while Jack trudged along behind them, wondering what Raleigh might want.

He walked up the stairs to the top floor, where Raleigh's 'office' resides. It's pretty much just a big chair and a desk. Once at the top, Jack knocked on the door. The reply came from inside; "come in, Jack!" He opened the door and Raleigh was sitting in his big chair again, with his hands forming a ball in the center of his desk.

"Hello, again, boy! I hope nobody was hurt or injured?" Jack shook his head. "No, and it seemed like Liam even knew the guy we were selling to." Raleigh nodded. "Yes, he and Vin go way back. Now, though, I have another task for you." He pulled out a rolled up map from his desk drawer. Once he opened it, Jack noticed there were ten black circles and four red circles. Three of the red ones had black crosses in them, as well as one of the black ones with a red cross.

"The black areas are our safehouses, where we store goods and parts. The red ones are enemy safehouses. The ones that are crossed are ones which were destroyed or taken over. See, one of ours was destroyed a few weeks ago, and three of them from different gangs were discovered and taken over. See the one without a cross?"

Raleigh pointed at the area in question, and Jack nodded. "This one we discovered a few days ago. Your task will be to wipe out the entire place so we can claim it. You will go with five other men, fully armed. Think you can handle it?" Jack processed this for a few seconds. "You want me to kill other people?"

Raleigh frowned. "Not people, Jack. Terrorists, rival gang members, the evil bunch. We are some of the good gangs out there. We not only deal in drugs and black marketing, we help the people. We give money to charity, we help in the construction of vehicles, we are trying to bring the economy back. Never think that what you are doing is wrong if you are doing it for your family."

His words sunk in, and Jack nodded. "Fine. I'll go, sir." Raleigh smiled. "Call me boss, Jack. Lila is waiting for you in the storage room. She'll tell you what to do and where to go." Jack nodded again and left the room, walking down the stairs. Behind him, Raleigh put the map back into his drawer and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it with an old zippo.

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Jack found Lila sitting on a crate in the storage room. When she heard him open the door, she stood up and walked up to him. "Did Raleigh tell you what you're going to do?" Jack nodded. "I'm going to help five other guys take over a safehouse." Lila nodded to herself and opened a couple of crates.

"These are some of the weapons crates. You need to choose two of them, a primary and a secondary. Then name them." Jack looked at her. "Name them? What for?" Lila smiled. "So you get attached to them. It will make you want to protect them, and thus you'll have to defend yourself better. You can't protect anyone else if you can't protect yourself."

Jack still looked skeptical, but he nodded anyway. He walked up to the crates. There was one filled with rifles, one for pistols, one for shotguns and one for machine guns. He found a light revolver like the one he had trained with for so long and picked it up. This one was different, it's grip a dark brown instead of black. He put it back, noticing something else that caught his eye.

There was a massive revolver, engravings all along it's silver barrel. The grip was black carbon fiber, and the cylinder had lines running diagonally through it, making it look like a screw or tornado. "This one." Lila nodded her approval. "That's a cool one. What will you name it?"

Jack recalled the many words his grandfather had taught him. The only time he could openly speak to someone was when his grandpa showed up. He would teach Jack every word he knew, and would play with him all day. After some thought, and a sudden burst of rage towards his parents, jack answered.

"Desecrator. The Desecrator." Lila was surprised. "What? Is that even a word?" Jack looked at her. "Yes. My grandfather taught it to me. Desecration. It's a verb, meaning to dig up or prophanize a grave," Lila nodded slowly. "Okay, weirdo. Choose another one." Jack nodded and walked to the machinegun crate.

He found the one he was looking for quickly. Jack pulled out a Thompson submachinegun from the crate. "This one." Lila seemed to approve and disapprove at the same time. "It's a good weapon, but are you sure? You've chosen ones you have been using for a long time. You need some variety."

Jack shook his head. "No, this one is fine. I'll call it... Shredder." He looked at Lila. She had turned around to open another crate, this one full of neatly stacked ammo boxes. She opened the one beside it too, one holding all sorts of magazines and drums.

"All the weapons are empty. I'll get you a sling and holster while you load up a drum. Jack nodded as Lila left to the very back of the room. He easily picked out the correct drum and ammunition type. He was halfway done loading when Lila came back.

"Here. I also got you an ammo belt for the revolver. We have no quickloaders for it, so you'll have to do it manually." Jack nodded as he worked. "That's fine. What ammo does it use?" Lila picked up a box from the many others.

"This one is weird. We took it from a jackass who thought he could cross us. I have to admit though, he was really good with guns. Your 'Desecrator' uses fifty cal, which is this massive fuckin' bullet." She took out a single round from the box. It was a half-inch wide, and as long as Jack's middle finger.

"The wack-job made the damn thing large enough to fit six of these big boys in that cylinder, which is why it's so damn huge. The recoil might be a problem, just a heads up. These things have serious kick." Jack nodded and took the bullet. Lila wasn't wrong, the gun was pretty bulky and heavy.

He opened the cylinder and fit the bullet inside one of the holes. He closed it and pulled back the hammer a little. "Wait, what the hell are you doing? You can't fire that thing in here! If you want to test it, then you'll have to go to the training room." Jack blushed a bit, embarrassed. "Sorry. I'll test it later. But I can already tell how heavy the hammer pull is."

Lila nodded. "Yeah. The guy also made a custom holster for the thing. If it wasn't for that, you'd have to carry it in your hand the whole time. Let's go to the training room." She walked towards the door, ammo boxes in hand. Jack picked up the Shredder and The Desecrator, as well as the sling, ammo belt and holster. He followed suit after he made sure nothing would fall.

Once there, Lila handed Jack five more rounds. "Here. Top it off." Jack took them after setting down what he was carrying. Once he had the weapon loaded, he carefully closed the cylinder. Aiming it at one of the targets, he pulled back on the trigger. It felt heavy, and he knew that he would have to brace himself so it didn't fly out of his hand.

Changing his stance slightly, he pushed the hammer down. It wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, and he got ready for the kick. Jack pulled the trigger back slowly... and then the hammer flew back up.

The sudden and thunderous pop from the shot scared both Jack and Lila. The gun's barrel flew upwards, but Jack held on. The bullet flew through the air at an amazing speed, until it broke through the thin target. It almost blew it's whole head off, sending splinters everywhere. The bullet stopped after sinking a few inches in the thick concrete wall.

For a second the whole room was silent. Then Lila made a sound that resembled a laugh. Jack looked at her, and they both broke into a heavy fit of disbelieveing laughter. Raleigh walked through the door just as they started composing themselves. "I assume nobody was killed, then?" Jack swirled around.

"I, uhh... n-no, boss. We were just testing out my weapons." Raleigh nodded, a faint smile wiping the stern look on his face away. "Really? I'd love to see this. Carry on." He stood leaning against the wall and waited. Jack aimed the large weapon again and fired. This time the recoil was a bit more under hist control, but the sound it emitted made even Raleigh flinch.

"That's you're weapon? Jesus, I'd hoped you would use something more low-key, but I suppose it's fine. I could have one of the boys figure out a way to attach a sniper suppressor on that thing. What did you name it?" Jack puffed out his chest in pride. "The Desecrator." Raleigh nodded, satisfied. "Good. What else are you using?" Jack showed him the Thompson. "I guess that makes sense. The gig goes down tomorrow, so take a bath, change your clothes, get ready, and sleep well."

He turned around, opening the door. Before he left, he turned to look at Jack. "I'll need you to wake up at seven sharp. The boys will be waiting down in the garage until eight. Any later and they'll leave without you." He turned again and left, closing the door behind him.

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Jack found a note on the dresser when he woke up.

I sent your stuff to the dry cleaner's. This is all you'll need.

He wasn't sure who left it, but thought that it didn't matter anyways. Opening the dresser, he found it empty except for one sharp-looking tuxedo. There was a fedora hanging from a hook and a pair of black shoes at the bottom. He changed quickly, but was unsure as to whether or not try to put on the tie again. He chose against it, thinking that he could ask someone for help later.

Right now there was a job to be done.

He put the ammo belt on under the jacket in a cross fashion, hanging it from his right shoulder to his left hip. He loaded twenty-four bullets in, and hung the Thompson from the sling across his back. He put the holster on his brown tuxedo belt, and stored The Desecrator inside.

Once he was satisfied with the locations of everything, he left his room and walked out the hall and into the factory. Remembering where Reynolds had taken him earlier, he walked across the factory towards the garage. Before he left, Jack remembered to check the time on his clock; It read 7:42pm.

Once Jack entered the garage, he noticed how empty it looked. Other than some unfinished cars there was nothing there. He noticed one of the garage doors were open, and walked outside. He saw two black cars parked in front. There was seven people chatting about, all of them wearing fancy-looking tuxedos too.

When they noticed Jack, they stopped their conversations. One of the men was Liam. He walked over. "Hey, kid! You finally ready?" Jack nodded. "Yeah. I thought it was only going to be six people, not eight. Liam smiled. "Yeah, the boss and Daniels had a tiny argument. Daniels won, so now we're eight guys on the job."

Jack nodded. "Okay." He looked around a bit, and nobody moved. "Well, are we going or not?" The seven men roared with laughter, and started getting in the cars. Liam patted him on the back as he chuckled. "See the balls on this kid? He's a strong one for sure, eh?" The men agreed, still laughing. To jack, it seemed that they were laughing with him, and not at him, which was good.

The trip took twice as long as the last one, and they crossed a bridge this time. They stopped at an alley behind an old, run-down building. It looked like a large warehouse that was abandoned years ago. They all got out of the cars, Liam up front. He whispered to the troops.

"Right, boys, be chill. This one is gonna be quiet until we fire the first shot, alright? Everyone be careful not to hurt each other. I'll lead team A, and Ford will lead team B. My team will head up front while Ford's team enters from behind. Got it?" Everyone, including Jack, nodded. "Good. Let's go in and wipe out this nest of rats."

He turned and walked towards the front door, his weapon drawn. Everybody followed suit, drawing their weapons and walking behind Liam in a single-file line. Jack had his Shredder out, loaded and ready. Liam stopped in front of the door and stared at everyone, giving them an 'Are you ready?' look.

Everyone nodded, and Liam kicked the door in. Everyone streamed in, screaming and shooting. Three of the enemy mafia men were downed before they could react. The rest of them struggled to draw their own guns, but where shot before they could try to defend themselves.

There was a thin steel wall between the front room and the back room, and you could hear more muffled gunshots and angry yelling. More targets entered from different rooms in the warehouse. Jack was firing in bursts, so as to not hurt his own guys. Bullets were flying everywhere, and the men took cover behind machinery and crate bunches.

They kept firing, and yelling, until at last the final man was shot down. The silence in the warehouse was defeaning. Everyone's ears were ringing from the constant gunfire. No-one on their side had gotten hurt badly, only the occasional graze here and there.

Liam stood up straight and walked towards the door that divided the warehouse in two, Jack behind him . He pushed it open and called for Ford. "Hey, we have a problem! Richard's been shot!" Liam and Jack ran through the door, finding Ford's men crouched around a bleeding figure.

"How bad is it?" Ford replied grimly. "Not good. If we can move him carefully, and drive fast enough, we could probably patch him up back at HQ" Liam shook his head. "He'll never make it like this. We need to get him to a hospital, quick." Jack stood back up. "Then what are we waiting for? C'mon, hurry! We need to get him in the car!"

He ran towards the back door, pushing it all the way open. The guys didn't hesitate, picking up Richard and bringing him along. Jack asked Ford for the keys, and he tossed them at him. Once Jack had gotten the doors open, Liam and another guy got in. Ford sat in the driver's seat and Jack rode shotgun.

Liam turned to the rest of the men. "Search the place. Once you're done, take the other car to HQ. Give Daniels the report, even the part about Richard getting shot. We'll see you guys back home." He raised the window and gestured Ford to drive. He backed up and drove off, with the tires screeching as he did.

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It took them almost two minutes to arrive at the hospital, but to Jack it felt like an hour had passed. It turns out that Richard was shot three times, once on the left leg and once on the right shoulder, as well as once to the left above his stomach.

He hadn't been bleeding heavily, but that only made Liam more nervous. "His blood's piling up on the inside, I'm sure of it. It'll cause a lot of damage if it doesn't get treated right away." Nobody else said a word during the entire ride, except for Richard.

"Eyyy... what's... fucker got me in the knee... just need some band-aids..." Jack looked at him from the rear view mirror. "No, Richard. Band-aids don't fix bullet holes." Richard had blacked out from blood loss by the time they arrived at the hospital. Hurrying him inside, they ignored the scared civilian's stares. Nurses and doctors showed up to help.

"What happened?" Liam wasted no time. "Shot, needs help. Thigh, shoulder, chest. We will pay once he's stable. For god's sake, help him!" Two nurses showed up with a stretcher, and they all helped heave Richard on. Before the gang could follow them, a doctor spoke up, placing is hand in the way. "Well take care of him." Liam stared at him for a few moments before nodding, and backing down.

A nurse lead them to the waiting room, where they stayed for almost two hours before the doctor came back. He closed the door and threw the lock, making sure nobody else was present. He turned to the men and Jack. "Alright, which gang are you guys with? Saxon's? Courtney's?" Ford shook his head. "Raleigh's."

The doctor nodded. "Figures. He'll be fine, for the most part, but it would be dangerous for him to go out again within at least two months." Liam nodded. "We'll be sure to tell the boss not to overwork him." It seemed weird to Jack that they were talking about this so openly.

The doctor sighed tiredly. "You mob gangs are all the same. You say something and do the complete opposite. I'm tired of having to lie to the police about some of my patients. I won't tattle, but this is the last time I let you in, Okay?" Ford nodded. "We understand, doctor. What's the bill?" The doctor sighed again.

"It's always about money, isn't it? Six hundred fifty dollars. Three surgeries aren't cheap." Ford nodded again, and took out his wallet. After a few moments, he came up with a pristine credit card. "Can I pay with this?" The doctor nodded. "I'll go get the machine thing." He turned around and left again.

They sat there for a few minutes, everyone with sullen faces. Even Jack, who didn't know Richard personally. The doctors returned with the card reading machine, and Ford payed for Richard's surgeries. Then, a nurse walked in. "He's ready to see guests." All at once, the three men and the boy stood up. The nurse opened the door all the way to let them through.

She guided them to Richard's room. It was a moderately small white room, with some long lamps hanging from the ceiling. Richard was in a hospital robe, bandages covering his wounded spots. They were tinged with red, but at least they weren't blood soaked.

"Hey, guys. How're you doing?" His words were only lightly slurred, and his eyes seemed focused enough. "How are we?" Ford spoke. "Damn, Rich, you are the dumbest motherfucker I've ever met." Even as he spoke these words, Jack could see his smile. A faint one tugged at Richard's lips. "Heh. Thanks, Ford." Liam walked up to His bed, standing beside Ford. "You alright, Rich?" Richard's smile widened. "Yep. Never better. Just a bit drowsy is all." He looked at the other man. "C'mere, Tyler." The man walked up to Richard.

The three of them had a rather long conversation, which made Jack feel left out. He slowly wandered to the door, but before he could exit, he heard Richard murmur his name. "Where's the kid? Jack?" He turned to look at The wounded man. "I'm here, Richard." The man waved him over, and smiled.

"You can call me Rich. If it weren't for you, I'd probably still be bleeding out since these three bozos have the reaction time of a drunk bear." Jack smiled again. "I never thought I'd live to see a drunk bear." The men laughed along with Jack. Right then, a nurse came along.

"I'm sorry, but Richard here needs some rest. I'm going to have to ask you to leave. You may come back tomorrow... as long as you loose the outfits. Makes the other patients nervous. Okay?" The men nodded and everyone said their goodbyes before leaving. They got into the car and Ford drove them away.

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Raleigh looked like was having an inner war of emotions. When they arrived at the garage, he had a stern face, but a lighthearted smile on his lips. "Should I brace myself for the worst?" His voice was playful, but his eyes told a different story. Liam stepped up. "Richard will be fine within a couple months, or so we were told. Did the rest of the guys give you the report?" Raleigh nodded.

"Yes, they said you had them search the place. They secured it before heading back, making sure no one could claim it before we did." Liam nodded. Raleigh turned to look at Daniels, who was standing beside him the whole time. "Send out some of your best bouncers to claim the outpost."

Daniels nodded and left. Raleigh turned back to the three men. "Ford, I'll need a report from you about Richard's situation. The rest of you, go to your rooms. You earned some rest." They nodded and everybody left the room. Jack walked calmly towards his room, with his head in the clouds.

He entered and started changing his clothes. There was some grime and a little blood on the tuxedo, but it looked fine other than that. His dresser had been replenished while he was out, and he put on some comfortable clothes and a sweatshirt. He noticed that his nightstand had books now, too. He combed through the selection, and found one he liked.

He read the book while laying on his bed. Eventually, his eyelids grew too heavy, and he fell asleep, the book still gripped in his hands. He dreamed, or remembered, times with his family. The few instances he made his parents laugh, the times his grandfather played with him on the yard...

Every memory he had was happy, with not a single sour grape in the bunch.

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Some More Author's Notes

There, another 5k chapter has been finished. This is mentally exhausting.

I hope everyone enjoyed it, thank you for your time, And good day!

~ LeMafiaKreb

P.S, if you like Minecraft, then maybe you should read my main fanfic, Knock-On-Wood

Please do so, and leave reviews. It makes me want to write, and that helps. :)


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